Question on Post-RP Catheter

Hello everybody,

Long story short, I spent the last two months researching and talking to more doctors than I care to remember and decided on RP.  Best choice for me given my set of circumstances and personal preferences.  Barring anything catastrophic, looking at a surgery date in late January.

In order to not "clog the net," I've been reading everybody's answers to other folks' questions regarding what to expect, logistics and recovery....

Regarding the post-surgery catheter and all the joys that come with that experience... dumb question, but do you wear underwear while 'attached'?  I saw some mention of going with tighter briefs, maybe even with pads prepositioned in case there's some leakage around the tube from the urethra...  it just seems like all that extra stuff would tug on the tube and make things somewhat unpleasant, especially when walking.

How exactly does that part work?  I've already gotten the side-snap pants with extra room for a bloated belly... just didn't understand what's going on underneath.

Thanks in advance for your help.

You'll probably come home from the hospital with a sticky/velcro thingie stuck to the inside of your thigh to serve as a strain relief so nothing tuggs on you. You thread the catheter hose through the leg hole of your briefs along with your leg. I liked snug briefs to keep everything well suspended and battened down. That way the hose doesn't jiggle and I don't jiggle. After a day or two the sticky will fail and you will have to find some other way to do the strain relief bit. I used the sports tape that sticks to itself but not to anything else.

I found that wearing regular briefs worked best, just run the catheter out the leg. As others mentioned, you probably have a sticky pad that fastens the catheter to your upper thigh to minimize tugging. I found the catheter was a love/hate situation. I loved it since I didn't have to get up to pee at night or during the day. I hated it because of the routine of changing back and forth of the night and day bag. Plus I developed a stricture from a huge oversize catheter which took several months to resolve.

Hello, my husband actually came home from the hospital in the hospital gown with a t shirt on top (I had not discovered HW yet or we would have been much better prepared).  The first week he lived in the hospital gown and stayed inside the house.  On the second week, he started wearing loose basketball shorts and sweat pants. Learn how to change from the big bag to the leg bag while in the hospital.  We did not pay enough attention to that part and my husband stayed with the big bag way too long.  It was much more comfortable wearing the leg bag.  Good luck!

Fred,

Restrict movement The LESS your dick moves with the Catheter the BETTER! Boxer shorts allow too much movement and they are not recommended. So wearing comfortable briefs that restrict movement of the "head" and the protruding tube, makes for a happy and sometimes less stressful 10 days.

Natural direction of dick Be aware of your dicks natural direction in your pants now ... yep, a dick in its rest position either points left or right. So when the catheter is on, ask for the bag to go onto the leg that allows your dick to rest in its usual position.

Do not strain Another and most important point during those first post op days -- DO NOT STRAIN whilst on the loo; relax and the crap will come. If you strain, you'll sometimes notice bright red blood oozing from the urethra! This might freak you out.

Drink lots of water I set my limit to 2 litres for the day and purchased 24x500ml distilled water from my super market.

Bendy straws get a few of those party straws the kiddies use with a bend in them it helps when you drink hot stuff whilst still in a reclining position.

Night time bucket Get a bucket for the night-time bag. Most have had accidents where the night time bag dislodged and there was piss all over the floor (in my case).

Hygiene keep it clean. Wash the tube regularly and wash those hands more than you usually do.

I only had it in for 10 days... spare a thought for men who had it in for weeks and some for months.

I was King of Catheters, having spent a total of 1 1/2 years on them, 21 of them altogether, including 51 weeks with a Suprapubic cath coming out of my stomach area.

I disagree with some of the advice here.

Best to wear boxers while on the cath. Briefs when the cath is gone and you are using pads, the briefs help to hold the pads in place.

If you are going to be staying in or around the house, just keep the big bag on (sometimes referred as the night bag), just easier that way. For starters, the big bags are self venting, where the leg bags are not.. You can safely lay down with the big bag attached, not recommended with the leg bags - these aren't vented and can cause the urine to back up inside the bag, and up the hose. Once your urine leaves your penis, it is contaminated. No longer sterile.

With the leg bag, the real trick is to keep it plenty loose. Since I spent so much time on caths, I learned all the tricks. You can buy swivel type holders, that allow the tube to bend with your leg, instead of tightening up. Don't cost much. You can find them at good medical supply stores or easily online.

I was told not to lube the end of my penis, as it will only attract more dirt and crud. You should do what your doctor advises. Perhaps it makes a difference if one is circumcised or not. I am not, so there is a natural cover over the end.

Also feel some men get too OCD about washing and rinsing the bags and tubes. Not saying to let them get too skank, but the moment the bag is used, its instantly contaminated regardless of how often you clean it.

I agree about constant hand washing, most important, and using hand sanitizers..

As far as putting big bag in a bucket, never ever felt a need to do that. There's a hook on the bag, and I would either hook it on a dresser handle (if close enough to bed), or on side of bed rail below the mattress or box spring. As long as the bag is lower than your highest point while lying down, it will draw and drain fine.

Finally, would never fully empty the bag, would leave a little in the bottom, as it helped to draw new liquid into the bag.

For the men that are only on a catheter for 7-10 days, some of the general advice is overkill in my opinion. Long term use, that's another story.

You got plenty of good advice. I just wore boxers and loose work out pants until cath was out. Take stool softeners so you don't strain while having BM or you'll have a bloody mess as urine and blood seeps around the cath. The whole thing is no big deal and is usually over quickly.
Bob